Pinot Noir is so prized because it is “expressive”: it is able to transparently communicate a lot of information about the climate and land on which it is grown. This kind of sensitivity makes Pinot fragile, however, which is why it is so expensive to make (and to buy).
Last week, I wrote about a blind tasting of premium Pinot Noir. The trick in this tasting was to identify the country for each of the four Pinots on offer. Theoretically, each wine should have its own national character, as recognizable as a thick accent.
Since false modesty is not one of my many vices, I confess that of the 20 or so participants, I was the only one to peg each wine correctly.
Here are my tasting notes, and how I pulled it off:
Kooyong Estate 2006 Pinot Noir, Mornington Peninsula, Australia ($52.50 [Ed. note: 2006 no longer available]). Australia is a great place to grow Shiraz, but most of the country is too hot to produce high-quality Pinot Noir. The Mornington Peninsula is an exception because it’s in a cooler part of the country (southeast of Melbourne, in Victoria) and because it juts out into the ocean, which moderates the climate.
Kooyong Estate’s Pinot is excellent. It has a richness which immediately identifies it as coming from the New World, but the fruit is not too heavy. This is an excellent choice if the charm of thin Pinot Noirs escapes you: Kooyong has both structure and subtlety. This is why I guessed this wine was from Australia — plus it had a tell-tale hint of mint, which is common to many Australian reds. 90/100
Jadot 2005 “Clos des Ursules,” Beaune, Burgundy ($79.00). In a blind Pinot tasting, it is easy to pick out the French wine because it will usually be the lightest. This was no exception.
Jadot’s Clos des Ursules is fine and featherweight. It has the bright acidity of unripe cherries and a long citrus finish. Whereas many Pinots have a rough character — barky or twig-like — this polished wine has a gentler note of balsa wood. An expensive delicacy. 91/100
Foley 2006 Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara, California ($53.95). I figured this wine must be from California, because it bore the unmistakable mark of being a New World wine made in a popular but inelegant style. Warm weather had sapped its acidity and made the fruit flavours taste less like cherries and more like Cherry Coke. 87/100
Carrick 2006 Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand ($39.95 [Ed. note: 2006 no longer available]). The Carrick was the best Pinot (and the cheapest). Its flavours are raw and unripe, but also complex, textured and constantly evolving. Because it had spicy hints of celery salt and white pepper, I deduced it must be from New Zealand, where they make excellent Pinots with these idiosyncratic flavours. It truly expressed the essence of this lovely landscape (pictured above). 91/100
If you are intrigued by any of these wines, they can be purchased through the Lifford Wine Agency.
Matthew Sullivan is a civil litigator in Toronto. He writes a weekly blog entry here on lawandstyle.ca. The Short Cellar column appears in the print edition of Precedent. Matthew can be reached at n matthew@lawandstyle.beta-site.ca . Follow along on Twitter: @shortcellar.